1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to baby mattresses and more particularly to baby mattresses having a removable baby-carrying piece, which can be used to hold a baby and placed to the mattress with the baby without disturbing or waking up the baby.
2. Description of the Related Art
Babies (including newborns—from 0 to 6 weeks of age and infants—from 6 weeks to 1 year of age) need body contact with a parent or other caregiver (thereafter “caregiver”) in order to feel safe. As many caregivers would testify, one of the fastest ways to put a baby to sleep is to hold the baby in one's arms and rock the baby back and forth. This may be explained with the utmost proximity between baby and the caregiver, the warmth of the caregiver's body, the heart beat of the caregiver's body, etc.
Trying to put a baby to sleep by placing the baby in a bassinet and rocking the bassinet back and forth is usually met with more resistance and cries from the baby compared to holding the baby in one's arms, even if the caregiver is right over the bassinet, since the baby feels an increased distance from the caregiver's body.
Trying to put a baby to sleep by placing the baby in a crib is even more difficult and met with even more resistance from the baby and could take much longer, since the baby feels even more isolated.
As a result, when putting the baby to sleep, many caregivers would prefer to hold the baby in their arms and rock the baby back and forth (or from side to side), and when the baby falls asleep place the baby in a bassinet or a crib and then leave the baby asleep.
Since babies usually need to be put to sleep between 6 to 10 times per day (or between 1000 and 2000 or more times for the first six months), holding the baby in one's arms can be tiring for the caregiver and can lead to muscle stress, problems and/or injuries in the back, neck, shoulders, and other unwanted symptoms.
To alleviate these problems, a number of devices can be used, such as the “Boppy Nursing Pillow” (U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,134), the “Brest Friend” (U.S. Pat. No. 7,454,808), or a regular pillow. In order to put the baby to sleep using these devices, the caregiver can sit in a rocking chair (such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,557), put the Boppy, the Brest Friend, or the pillow on their knees, place the baby on top, and while holding the baby—lest the baby rolls off the device—rocks back and forth until the baby falls asleep. The benefit of using these devices is that the caregiver is not supporting the weight of the baby with their arms. Instead, the weight of the baby falls on the knees and in the lap of the caregiver. Also, because these devices will create a surface that is higher than the knees of the caregiver, the baby lies further up, closer to the chest of the caregiver, and the caregiver does not need to lean forwards to cuddle the baby, thus avoiding potential back problems. In fact, the usage of these devices is not absolutely required in order to put a baby to sleep; instead, the caregiver could use with similar success a regular pillow, a small sleeping pad, a small changing pad, or other devices that could elevate the baby and create a surface that is flat and sufficiently firm for the baby to fall asleep comfortably while in the caregiver's lap.
A problem using all of these devices comes when the baby finally falls asleep and the caregiver decides to move the baby to a bassinet or a crib, so that the baby can continue to sleep unattended while the caregiver does something else. The problem is that in order to place the baby in a crib or a bassinet, the caregiver needs to somehow lift the baby from this position, move the baby to the crib, and lay the baby in the crib without waking the baby up. When trying to lift the baby, the caregiver usually would create pressures in the baby's body that did not exist while the baby was sleeping. This would frequently cause the baby to wake up and to start crying.
For example, the common—and perhaps the most non-obtrusive—way that caregivers could attempt to lift the baby would be by placing one palm under the baby's head and neck, while placing the second palm under the baby's bottom and lower back and then lift the baby. However, even this seemingly innocuous procedure could provide too much stimulus for the baby and cause the baby to wake up, since placing the palms under the baby creates pressure points between the baby's head and the palm, or between the baby's bottom and the palm—which are different than the pressure points between the lying baby and the Boppy (in case a Boppy was used for the purpose). Also, even if the baby does not wake up while the caregiver is lifting the baby from the Boppy, the baby would likely wake up when the caregiver attempts to place him or her in the crib. Likewise, attempting to lift the baby by placing the palms under the baby's armpits will frequently wake up the baby.